The true story of four North Perth residents and their quest to dine in every restaurant on Beaufort Street.

11 February 2008

Charco's Charcoal Chicken

This week saw a slight departure from the usual procedure: while Charco’s Chicken has seating for around 30 people at any given time, the decision was made to make use of their main function as a takeaway outlet and dine at the home of Brains and the Deliberator.

And what a takeaway outlet it is. Don’t be sucked in by the name – not only is Charco’s chicken range not just limited to the charcoal variety (they also specialise in Portuguese spicy "flat" chicken, barbecued chicken, chicken nuggets and chicken drumsticks among others), they are the one-stop shop for take-away food. You name it, they do it: souvlaki, burgers, lasagna, schnitzel, ribs and a variety of other solid take-away fare. They even do a sideline in vegetables, including (amazingly) scalloped potatoes in creamy sauce. And it doesn’t end there – you can wash down your feast with coffee or a selection of icecream sundaes and milkshakes. And it’s halal to boot!

Staff were extremely well-presented, efficient and friendly. And wise: the Sponge was advised against the excessive application of vinegar to the chips to avoid sogginess on the journey home (advice which was followed to the benefit of all – see below).

Unfortunately, the Deliberator and the Sponge (being the appointed purchasers of said takeaway) were completely overwhelmed and bamboozled by the dazzling array of snacks on offer and so decided simply to judge the establishment on its flagship: chicken and chips.

The food was a delight. The chips were golden brown, crispy and covered in just the right amount of oil (prompting the Sponge to proclaim them the Best Chips on Beaufort Street (thus far…)). The portuguese chicken was spicy and cooked to perfection. This was a particular favourite of the Deliberator, who monstered almost an entire bird down to the bone (think of those old documentaries showing a cow being stripped by a school of piranhas in 20 seconds flat).

In all, Charco’s Chicken are the benchmark of the Beaufort Street takeaway merchants. The BSBs cannot recommend it enough, although be prepared to spend a little time there as you negotiate their American-sized array of goodies.

Most of my order for two people (a rack of ribs, potato salad, Portuguese chicken and chips) went straight into the bin. The potato salad was revolting and inedible, to the point where even tasting it was a bad idea. The dressing was completely solid and waxy -- I assume some kind of fat had solidified through refrigeration. Bleugh.

The (lamb) ribs had a lovely sauce on them, but were inedibly fatty. Not realizing the shop was halal, we were expecting pork ribs and were disappointed to receive lamb ribs instead. They were picked at but 9/10 of the rack ended up in the bin. Lamb fat has such an overpowering flavour that the ribs were just not appetising.

The fries were fine, on a par with KFC or Nandos, a bit bland and could have done with more salt. All the fries were eaten.

The chicken was extremely dry, though the marinade was spicy and tasty. In fact it was so dry that despite being hungry, most of this ended up in the bin too.

Beaufort Street Bloggers

It has been a long held tradition for the Beaufort Street Bloggers to eat together on a Thursday night. After all, Thursday is the new Friday. To spice up Thursday night dining in 2008, a unanimous decision was made to eat at every restaurant on Beaufort Street, starting from the top of Inglewood and working our way down to the city. There will undoubtedly be some lowlights (think Dial-A-Chop-Stix and the Civic Hotel), but there is a whole bunch of good food around this part of town. The rules are simple, to qualify, a restaurant must have room for us to sit in and be open on Thursday nights. This blog documents the results of this lofty challenge. If you want to contact the bloggers, please email beaufortstreetbloggers [at] gmail [dot] com

So who are the Beaufort Street Bloggers?

The Deliberator

World renowned (he has excessively deliberated over menus the world over, to the chagrin of many a waiter), the Deliberator takes pride in his ability to frustrate even the most tolerant of wait staff, let alone his long suffering fellow Beaufort Street Bloggers.

Reflecting on himself (in a positive light as always), the Deliberator lists his favourite past times as pork belly, champagne cocktails and falling asleep on other people’s couches. Upon review of what lies ahead of him in the 2008 Beaufort Street Challenge, the Deliberator remained focussed on the year ahead, stating only that he was glad there were going to be a few budget Thursday nights ahead, as he has already committed 3 months wages to the purchase of a ring from Tiffanys for a certain pixie haired blonde within the team.

Despite still harbouring a love of vegemite on toast from his university days, the Deliberator prides himself on his culinary prowess and exacting standards. He has declared 2008 the year he not only finally drives a waiter to suicide and/or mass murder, but also establishes himself as the West’s answer to the Lygon Street gangster, tipping that before the year is out the name “Deliberator” will be spoken with hushed reverence in cafes and restaurants the length and breadth of Beaufort St.

The Brains

Aptly named because she is indeed the “brains" behind the 2008 Beaufort Street Challenge and also, because sometimes she just seems so smart the entire team prefers that she orders for them, the Brains is a complex character – lawyer by day, avid restaurant reviewer by night and frustrated interior decorator for pretty much all of the time in between.

The 2008 Beaufort Street Challenge came to the Brains whilst on her 7th glass of champagne just after Christmas 2007. Throwing caution to the wind, she drained her glass, slammed the table and declared to all and sundry in a rather agitated voice “2008….2008 we’re doing it. We’re starting at the top and we’re not stopping til the end!” Upon seeing the puzzled stares of those around her , the Brains went on to explain in more detail that what she meant was that 2008 was the year she and her fellow diners would begin at the top of Beaufort Street and eat at every eating establishment before the year was out. Needless to say her fellow team members were yet again left reeling at the sheer genius that is “The Brains”.

The Brains is also the long suffering partner of the Deliberator, having accompanied him on his most recent overseas expeditions to restaurants throughout Europe and Asia. Amenable in nature and blessed with the patience of a saint, the Brains only has to see a Tiffany & Co. advertisement to remind herself that one day, one day very soon, it will all be worthwhile….

Bito (Bun in the Oven)

Reformed party girl whose previous mantra was “Thursday is the new Friday”, BITO is currently at the 24 week mark of an alcohol free sentence known to most as pregnancy. Whilst BYO and corkage are no longer of concern to BITO, it is testament to her spirit and commitment to the team that she has committed herself to the 2008 Beaufort Street challenge in the role of designated driver.

Even before eating for 2, BITO was a committed fan of various Beaufort Street establishments and did not have to be asked twice when contacted by the Brains with regards to the 2008 Beaufort Street Challenge, stating only that there was no bloody way she was doing Jackson’s degustation menu sans alcohol.

Married to “The Sponge”, Bito is renowned in the team for her new found patience and tolerance of drunkards in her automobile.

The Sponge

Standing at the immodest height of 6 foot 4”, with size 14 feet, the Sponge has an appetite known to send many a kitchen into a flurry and a capacity for alcohol that has seen more than the odd sommelier rubbing his hands in delight.

Responsible for BITO’s current plight, the Sponge sees 2008 as the year he becomes a first time father yes, but more importantly, the year in which finally establishes himself as force to be reckoned within the Beaufort Street precinct.

When asked what unique attributes he thought he brought to the 2008 Beaufort Street Challenge, the Sponge declared that whilst he preferred to think of himself as a bit of an “all rounder”, he did think his world class background in spaghetti marinara and a capacity to calculate corkage in the blink of an eyelid were going to prove invaluable to the team in the year ahead.